Tamiť
is a Catholic monastery in the French Alps. A group of Trappist monks
live in this beautiful 800 years old monastery with a most beautiful
location in the French Alps: On the hillside with view to the famous
mountain Mont Blanc on a bright day, Tamiť is far away from stress of
all kinds. It's a perfect place for peace and reflections.

Follow
a steep and narrow local road from the French village Albertville
constant up and up in every bend of the road - and at last you are
there: The friendly and smiling monks welcome guests to a house for
over-night-guests beside the monastery.

Talking to their guestsYou
feel welcome the minute you see the please and meet the monks. Several
of the monks are used to spend much time talking to their guests. Local
people visit the monks when they need someone to talk to or have a hard
time in life. Some only need the nice recreation in the beautiful
nature around the monastery. Some need to talk about their relation to
God and receive personal advices from one of the monks. Others need the
contemplative quietness that the monastery gives for a good retreat. In
France its common to visit the monastery - in fact many people do so.

The
catholics are in many ways very nit to the monastery and for very good
reasons: The monks care of you and do their best to help you no matter
what you believe in or where you come from. In short they are very
tolerant and wise men and they are there for you. Most of them only
speak French.

I
was lucky to have some fine talks with Brother Paul: Because of his
background from Switzerland he spoke well German and a little English.
He said: God is just as close to mankind as the wheel is close to the
road. Still a lot of people can't find God.

You feel welcome the minute you see the please and meet the monks. One of them is Brother Claud

Many
regard monks as serious men in unpractical clothes behind closed doors
with heir books and prayers day and night ages away from the modern
society. That's far from the truth. The monks have a very good sense of
humour. They are easy to talk to and very updated to your modern life.
And it looks like they live a happy life.

Material povertyThey
are hard working people and they live in material poverty but spiritual
riches. This helps them to concentrate on the spiritual side of life
and help them develop their contact with God.

-
It's easier to have a dialog with God in the monastery, one of them
told me referring to all spiritual disturbing elements in modern
civilization.

Some
of them are doing practical works like gardening, work in the forest or
all kinds of work needed to run and take care of the beautiful old
buildings. Others have studied theology and other subjects at different
universities in France.

Some
of them were doing the work in the kitchen preparing the very tasty
meals for their guests. Most of the food is from the fields belonging
to the monastery including the wine, the milk and the vegetables. Tree
times a day they serve you meals in a very nice room decorated with
local flowers and nice classic music or church music.

Quire songI
love their beautiful quire song in the olds monastery church and the
most tasteful and famous Tamiť-cheese from their cheese factory where
the cheese production amounts to approximatively 400 kg of Tamiť cheese
per day.

The monastery church gives service seven times a day.

Contemplative lifeThe
monastery church gives service seven times a day. The monks get up tree
in the morning and half an hour later the first service starts with the
most beautiful quire supported with harp and organ. At 8 p.m. the monks
go to bed for the night.

You don't have to follow their timetable for the day, but it's tempting to do so because of the beautiful music in the church.

The
monks live very different form the way of life to most of us: They are
dedicated to a contemplative life in a close dialog with their God. To
many of us it's strange to give up all material belongings and live the
whole life in a spiritual community with very little private life. But
to them it's worth it.